Overall Erythroid Response (OER) (as per the 2006 Modified IWG Criteria) is one of the secondary endpoints of the study and is defined as: Having sustained one of the following criteria over a minimum of 8 weeks: >= 1.5 g/dL rise in Hb, OR Reduction in transfusion requirements by at least 4 RBC units for patients who were RBC transfusion dependent (defined as requiring 4 or more RBC units within 8 weeks prior to the first dose of PROCRIT (Epoetin alfa) at baseline. Only RBC transfusions given for a Hb of <= 9.0 g/dL pretreatment will count in the RBC transfusion response evaluation.